By RICK MILLER
Olean Star
LITTLE VALLEY — In his 16 years as director of the Cattaraugus County Office of Real Property Tax Services, Daniel Martonis has had a goal of bringing assessments under the county’s direction.
With the approval Wednesday by county lawmakers of contracts for 29 of the county’s 32 towns, that goal is coming closer.
Martonis has been working with the county legislature’s County Operations/Public Safety Committee to increase the number of towns contracting with the county for assessment. The county currently provides assessment services for 15 towns.
Only three towns are without a contract with the Office of Real Property Tax Services: Napoli, Little Valley and Ellicottville. Martonis said as the Napoli supervisor he didn’t want to be sen as pushing it on the town.
“We provide professional services and we are available five days a week for eight hours a day,” Martonis said after the 29 resolutions for town contracts were passed.
County Legislature Chairman Andrew Burr thanked Martonis for his efforts toward county-wide assessing.
Martonis said the number of towns who have indicated they want to go with county assessing “is in the 20s.”
Towns who still have appointed town assessors have a decision to make, Martonis said. Most assessors’ six-year-terms are expiring. It is also getting more difficult to hire assessors. “A couple of assessors are retiring and they can’t find replacements. We’re here if they want to use us.”
Town assessors, which started out as three-member boards, had gone to elected positions before
Martonis said the best thing about the county’s Real Property Tax Services Office doing the assessing of properties “is that everyone will pay evenly. Also, most (towns) are cheaper than what they were paying before.”
Martonis has a staff of 11 in the office, seven of whom are assessors. “We built this service in-house. We are now partners with the town boards of the towns we serve. They can terminate the service in 60 days.”
Another feature of county assessing is that a town revaluation — which can cost between $100,000 and $300,000 — is free. “We keep them at 100% valuation,”
he said.
“It’s been a slow build-out, so we can do it right,” Martonis said. They towns are saving money and there are fewer errors.
Why has Martonis pursued the county assessing option over the years?
“When you see two houses in different towns that are assessed at different levels, it’s tough,” Martonis explained. “Some assessors would assess one way in one town and another way in the next town.”
With more county assessing, assessments will be fairer across the county, Martonis said. “County lawmakers will know that everyone is paying their fair share of the taxes.”
When towns don’t keep assessments current, the state will step in with a higher equalization rate that results in some towns paying a higher rate in county taxes.
“We are saving towns tax money for town residents,” he said. “Everyone will pay (taxes) evenly.”
And the cost will be fair as well, Martonis said. Towns will be charged the same per parcel in four categories: residential, commercial, industrial and all others.
Martonis said that now the county has approved the contracts, he has to go to the towns that have not yet decided and make the case for them making the change.
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